Cleveland Rape Crisis Center today announced the launch of its new brand, including a new logo, tagline and colors. The Center launched its new brand on Thursday, June 9, at its semi-annual chorale benefit event, Sing Out! for Cleveland Rape Crisis Center, held at Severance Hall. The organization’s name will remain the same.
“Cleveland Rape Crisis Center’s new brand is bold, optimistic and energetic – and most importantly, welcoming to survivors of rape and sexual abuse,” said Sondra Miller, President & CEO of Cleveland Rape Crisis Center. “We are excited to launch this new face to the community and to take this bold new step forward that reflects the transformative growth already underway at the Center.”
The new brand is designed to welcome survivors of rape and sexual abuse to get the help and support they need to recover and thrive. The brand mark is a threshold representative of place, strength and new beginnings. The threshold’s open and round structure encourages the act of walking beyond the threshold, to experience change through expert care and attention. The six colors are bright, welcoming and gender-neutral, representing the Center’s approachable and trusted nature.
The tagline, “Change starts here.” communicates that Cleveland Rape Crisis Center is a place where survivors of rape and sexual abuse can seek change in their lives – turn over a new leaf and start a new chapter. It’s a place where leaders can advocate for policy and societal change. A place where policy, perception and lives can change.
The Center’s brand roll-out will occur gradually, beginning with changing the website and signage at the Center’s main office in downtown Cleveland and its 12 satellite and regional offices throughout Cuyahoga, Lake, Geauga and Ashtabula Counties, as well as a planned campaign to advertise the Center’s services to the community in the coming months.
The mission of Cleveland Rape Crisis Center is to support survivors of rape and sexual abuse, promote healing and prevention and advocate for social change. The Center provided counseling, advocacy, prevention and training services to more than 28,000 people in 2015. For more information, visit clevelandrapecrisis.org or call 216-619-6194. The Center’s 24-hour rape crisis and support hotline is 216-619-6192 (call/text) or clevelandrapecrisis.org/chat.
# # #
Primary Logo
Secondary Logo
Reminder Logo
Branded Items
Catch a glimpse of the excitement and inspiration that await at Sing Out! 2016.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f466MLieDig&feature=youtu.be
On June 9, community members from across the region and representing a cross-section of our community will lend their voices to the Sing Out! Chorale. At Sing Out!, the Chorale offers an outstanding and uplifting performance that raises awareness, inspires change and raises funds to support the Center’s work.
Mark your calendar for June 9 and purchase your tickets today for this memorable and uplifting evening in support of Cleveland Rape Crisis Center.
Cleveland Rape Crisis Center (CRCC) and the Ohio Alliance to End Sexual Violence (OAESV) are pleased to announce that Kirsti Mouncey, Chief Program Officer at CRCC, is the recipient of the 2016 Visionary Voice Award for Ohio.
The National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) offers the Visionary Voice Award, in conjunction with Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) each April, to recognize the creativity and hard work of individuals around the country who have demonstrated outstanding work to end sexual violence. Each year, state, territory, and tribal coalitions select an outstanding individual to nominate for the awards. Nominees may be partners from a local community or other outstanding individuals that have worked to end sexual violence.
“Kirsti is a phenomenal leader who has positively impacted the lives of countless survivors and the sexual violence field, both in northeast Ohio and nationally,” stated Katie Hanna, Executive Director of OAESV, Ohio’s statewide sexual assault coalition. “Kirsti’s expertise in trauma-informed responses, as a clinician and advocate, is visible in any interaction you have with her. She embodies a supportive, trauma-informed individual and system response and it is with great joy that we present Kirsti with this year’s Visionary Voice Award.”
Kirsti Mouncey has worked at CRCC for more than 10 years and previously served as Trauma and Addictions Therapist and Vice President of Programs and Clinical Services. As the current Chief Program Officer, Kirsti provides leadership and supervision for the organization’s program directors, leads systems change efforts to ensure comprehensive services for survivors of sexual violence, and develops innovative programming for the expansion of rape crisis services in Northeast Ohio. Kirsti successfully led Cleveland Rape Crisis Center’s first CARF (Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities) Accreditation and has transformed the organization’s clinical services into a national model program for trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder treatment.
“Kirsti is a tireless advocate for survivors of rape and sexual abuse and we are proud that she is receiving this recognition from the National Sexual Violence Resource Center,” said Sondra Miller, President & CEO of Cleveland Rape Crisis Center. “Her work at the Center over the past 10 years has assured that survivors of rape and sexual abuse in our community receive the support and assistance they need to heal and thrive.”
Kirsti will be presented with the Visionary Voice Award at OAESV’s annual conference, June 14-15, 2016, in Columbus.
Cleveland Rape Crisis Center supports survivors of rape and sexual abuse, promotes healing and prevention, and advocates for social change throughout Northeast Ohio. Each year, more than 28,000 people, one-third of them youth, find support by participating in the Center’s counseling, advocacy and education programs. To learn more about Cleveland Rape Crisis Center, visit www.clevelandrapecrisis.org.
As Ohio’s statewide coalition, OAESV advocates for comprehensive responses and rape crisis services for survivors and empowers communities to prevent sexual violence. To learn more about the Ohio Alliance to End Sexual Violence, visit www.oaesv.org.
Cleveland, OH – Cleveland Rape Crisis Center is pleased to announce that its 2016 Sing Out! for Cleveland Rape Crisis Center, presented by University Hospitals (Sing Out!), will honor Heather Lennox Krause, Partner-in-Charge at Jones Day, Cleveland, for her leadership in advancing the mission of the Center.
Sing Out! is a long-standing one-night-only community music tradition which raises spirits, awareness and support for Northeast Ohio’s sole provider of comprehensive rape crisis services. The Sing Out! Chorale brings together more than 100 community, civic and business leaders to “sing out against rape and sexual abuse.” This year’s performance is scheduled for Thursday, June 9th at Severance Hall.
Linda M. Kane, Principal, Geraldine Financial Consulting, and Steven D. Standley, Chief Administrative Officer, University Hospitals, are co-chairing the event. The Chorale Committee is led by Amy G. Brady, Chief Information Officer, KeyBank; Richard J. Clark, Executive Vice President, John P. Murphy Foundation and Vice President, Kulas Foundation; and Lauren Rich Fine.
Heather Lennox Krause is a Cleveland native and graduate of Holy Name High School and John Carroll University. She has worked for Jones Day since earning her juris doctorate from Georgetown University Law Center. She is the 13th woman to head one of Jones Day’s 42 offices worldwide, and the first to lead the Cleveland office. She is a long-time supporter of the Center, has served on the Center’s board, and is a powerful voice in the community standing up for survivors of sexual abuse and prevention education.
“Heather has been an ardent supporter of Cleveland Rape Crisis Center for nearly 20 years and was a member of the Board of Directors for eight years,” says the Center’s Chief Development Officer, Sarah Trimble. “Heather has been a leader in so many ways. She is a steadfast advocate for the Center at Jones Day and to the many other organizations she has engaged in our mission. In every role she takes on for the Center, she gives it her all. We are so proud to honor her at the 2016 Sing Out!”
Sponsorships and tickets for Sing Out! are available by calling 216-619-6194 or by visiting www.clevelandrapecrisis.org.
Sing Out! for Cleveland Rape Crisis Center
Thursday, June 9
5:30 p.m. – VIP Pre-Performance Party
7 p.m. – Performance
Post-Performance Dessert and Champagne
Severance Hall, 11001 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44106
Sing Out! is a chorale performance to benefit Cleveland Rape Crisis Center. Community members representing a cross-section of our community lend their voices to the Voices of Change Chorale which offers an outstanding and uplifting performance that raises awareness, inspires change and raises funds to support the Center’s work. This year’s event will honor Heather Lennox Krause, Partner-in-Charge at Jones Day, Cleveland, for her leadership in advancing the mission of the Center.
Tickets: $100-$250. Purchase online at ClevelandRapeCrisis.org/Sing-Out or call (216) 619-6194 ext. 106.
Richard & Joanne Clark
John P. Murphy Foundation
Medical Mutual of Ohio
Lauren Rich Fine
The Lubrizol Corporation
Bernie Moreno Companies
Frantz Ward LLP
Geraldine Financial Consulting
Linda M. Kane
Kulas Foundation
Nancy W. McCann
Meaden & Moore
Steven Standley
Thompson Hine LLP
The mission of Cleveland Rape Crisis Center is to support survivors of rape and sexual abuse, promote healing and prevention and advocate for social change. The Center provided counseling, advocacy, prevention and training services to more than 28,000 people in 2015. For more information, visit www.clevelandrapecrisis.org or call 216-619-6194. The Center’s 24-hour rape crisis and support hotline is 216-619-6192 (call/text) or www.clevelandrapecrisis.org/chat.
###
CLEVELAND, OH – Cleveland Rape Crisis Center today kicks off Sexual Assault Awareness Month by launching two new ways for survivors of rape and sexual abuse to access help and support: by texting 216-619-6192 or by online chat at www.ClevelandRapeCrisis.org/chat. These services complement the Center’s Crisis and Support Hotline (216-619-6192) which it has operated since 1974.
“We are excited to launch two additional services to help survivors of rape and sexual abuse find the help and support they need to recover,” said Sondra Miller, President & CEO of Cleveland Rape Crisis Center. “Now, in addition to calling our Crisis and Support Hotline at 216-619-6192, survivors, their loved ones and members of the community can text or chat with our Advocates who are here 24/7 to believe, listen and help.”
Cleveland Rape Crisis Center has operated its since its inception in 1974. The Hotline provides support and assistance for survivors of rape and sexual abuse as well as their caregivers, loved ones and members of the community. Last year, Cleveland Rape Crisis Center fielded more than 3,000 calls to its phone hotline.
These expanded services for survivors are part of program expansions funded through the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) program administered by the Ohio Attorney General, Crime Victims Services (read the announcement). The grant, the largest in the organization’s history, is allowing Cleveland Rape Crisis Center to expand and enhance its counseling, advocacy and outreach services for survivors of rape, sexual abuse and sex trafficking.
About Cleveland Rape Crisis Center
The mission of Cleveland Rape Crisis Center is to support survivors of rape and sexual abuse, promote healing and prevention and advocate for social change. The Center provided counseling, advocacy, prevention and training services to more than 28,000 people in 2015. For more information, visit www.clevelandrapecrisis.org or call 216-619-6194. The Center’s 24-hour rape crisis and support hotline is 216-619-6192 (call/text) or www.ClevelandRapeCrisis.org/chat.
###
Please see a list of events in our community that Cleveland Rape Crisis Center will participate in to raise awareness about rape and sexual abuse during Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
Please Join Us!
I Will Find You Book Launch
Thursday, April 14, at 4:30 p.m.
The City Club of Cleveland
In 1984, Joanna Connors was thirty years old and a reporter for The Plain Dealer when she was raped at knifepoint by a stranger. Twenty years later, she went in search of the story of her own rapist, determined to find out who he was, where he came from, what his life was like – and what leads a person to do something as destructive as what he did to her. The journey is chronicled in her new book, I Will Find You.
Join us for an intimate conversation with Ms. Connors and Sondra Miller, President & CEO of Cleveland Rape Crisis Center. Sales of I Will Find You will benefit Cleveland Rape Crisis Center.
The event is free; please register online in advance at www.CityClub.org.
Friend of a Survivor (Carson)
Sara and Carson have been friends since before high school, but the first year they went to college, things changed. Sara lived away from home for the first time. Carson attended a different university. The distance made it more difficult for them to maintain a friendship. They had to rely on phone calls to stay up-to-date.
(Watch a video and read more about Carson.)
Years earlier during high school, Carson confided in Sara that she had been sexually abused at a young age by a friend’s father who lived on her street.
“Carson experienced a normal level of anxiety (during high school), but the new stresses of college turned her anxiety into something more,” said Sara. “Before, Carson handled it herself; she had learned to cope. But soon I started seeing symptoms that I’d never seen before.”
Panic attacks made it difficult for Carson to leave the house, which interfered with her school and job.
“We started to recognize that this problem was beyond both of us,” added Sara. Carson had not told her parents about the abuse yet and she was concerned they would find out if she talked to her primary care physician. Sara searched online for resources and they jointly decided that Cleveland Rape Crisis Center offered the most confidentiality. They scheduled a day to meet and take the bus to the Center – together.
“I had a feeling of absolute helplessness before we came to the Center,” said Sara. “I had done everything I could to offer advice. I knew Carson was unhappy, miserable and anxious. And not being able to see her made it even more difficult.”
Sara came with Carson to her first few therapy appointments at the Center. Eventually, Carson managed the trips on her own.
In the last 18 months, since they first came to the Center, Sara believes the most noticeable change in Carson is the higher level of confidence that she exhibits.
“Carson still struggles with anxiety. She still has days that are really difficult,” said Sara. “But she has the tools to deal with it now.”
Sara has grown to be quite proud of Carson, not just for the way she has overcome her own trauma, but because she is now speaking out to help other survivors.
“It is really inspiring to see Carson’s willingness to discuss her sexual assault with others. I remember when it was too painful for her to even tell me, then her parents. Now she is talking publicly – what a remarkable departure from where we were!”
There are thousands of friends in Cuyahoga County who, like Sara, are supporting survivors of sexual violence. Sara offers three pieces of advice:
It can be hard to find the right words to support a survivor. Sara learned that sometimes you don’t have to say anything. It helps to just be there – physically or emotionally.
It is important to recognize when problems are beyond what you can handle. For Sara and Carson, it was hard to convince themselves that this was more than they could handle. They learned it is okay to acknowledge when you need help.
For Sara, it was easy to lose herself in Carson’s struggles. When you are supporting a survivor day in and day out, it is okay to step back and take some time for yourself.
Sara also acknowledged that coming to the Center was not her decision. “It was up to Carson to decide,” Sara added. “My job was to know the resources and present the options without judgment. That’s what friends are for.”
YOU can become a Face of Change. Make a donation to support Cleveland Rape Crisis Center.
Child Sexual Abuse Survivor
She was frozen when her friend made her get off the bus. Panic-stricken. She couldn’t sleep. She could barely leave her room because her panic attacks were so severe. Carson didn’t know what to do.
Her best friend, Sara, didn’t really know either, but she had heard of Cleveland Rape Crisis Center. Sara rode the bus downtown with Carson and made her get off the bus, despite Carson’s pleas to just keep riding.
When they finally walked in the lobby of The Leader Building, Carson wanted to turn around. Sara made her keep walking and step on the elevator. There were 14 floors up and at least 14 reasons to go back home, but Sara insisted that Carson at least try the Center. Frankly, Sara didn’t know what else to do. 
I was terrified,” said Carson more than a year later. “But everyone (at the Center) was really nice, they were really friendly, they didn’t push me to tell them anything. I remember how scared I was and I remember that moment of feeling like oh my god, there is someone who actually will understand.”
When Carson was 3 or 4 years old, she was molested and raped by the father of a friend who lived across the street. She had no memory of the abuse until she was almost 16 years old. At 18, she found herself in her college dorm room, terrified that someone would find out.
“I didn’t want my family to know, I didn’t want anyone to know,” she recalls. “At first I was so scared of telling anyone and it was just horrifying to realize that everything I had thought I knew about myself wasn’t really correct.”
That changed when her friend Sara encouraged her to visit Cleveland Rape Crisis Center.
“(The Center) taught me to find the strength that I had and to use it, so that I can live my daily life again,” said Carson. “I want other people to know that no matter how alone they feel, there are other survivors who are here and we can all support each other.”
In the last 18 months, Carson has eagerly spoken out to encourage other rape survivors to seek help.
“If you haven’t come (to the Center) yet, if for some reason you are scared or you don’t think someone will believe you, or you don’t think you have the money, the treatment here is free and it can really change your life,” she added. “I understand why you’d be scared. I was terrified… It’s really hard as a survivor. You can talk to your friends and family and they really try to be there for you, but there is nothing like someone who knows what you are going through.”
How has the community responded to Carson’s outreach?
“The attitude I’ve been met with a lot of people is, ‘I’m not a rape survivor, I wasn’t molested, no one I know was molested.’ But chances are that somebody you know is a victim of molestation. Someone that is your friend or your family member (is a survivor) and it’s only by making a safer environment that they are going to speak out.”
You can help create a safe environment by joining Carson as a Face of Change and donating to Cleveland Rape Crisis Center.
